Robertson open to idea of not always closing for Phils

Before the communication breakdown in the first official hour that he was a member of the Phillies, David Robertson got his message across.

He's aware Phillies manager Gabe Kapler likes to change closers about as often as other managers change uniforms, but Robertson, a 33-year-old strikeout pitcher who has been one of baseball's most consistent right-handed relievers of the decade, says that's OK by him.

"That's something that doesn't really matter to me," Robertson said on the cranky conference call Thursday. "I want to pitch whenever I can to help the team win ballgames. If I have to pitch in the sixth, seventh or eighth or even the ninth, it doesn't matter to me. I just want to be in the back end of a bullpen when the big outs need to get made."

That's exactly where he was for the Yankees for two career tours, doing so very successfully.

A career set-up man and closer and 2011 All-Star, Robertson went 8-3 with a 3.23 ERA as Aroldis Chapman's set-up guy last season in New York, and tacked on five saves to that with 91 strikeouts over 69.2 innings of work.

"The fact that he has experience pitching in the ninth inning is something that was very appealing to us," Phils general manager Matt Klentak said. "I would expect that he will pitch the ninth inning at times, but I also know with Seranthony (Dominguez) and (Hector) Neris and others back there, we are likely to continue to use guys back there in a variety of roles late in the game. But make no mistake, we are signing (Robertson) to get big outs for us late in the game."

Reportedly, the deal is for two seasons and a guaranteed $23 million, with an option for a third season.

Until a cable television sports network housed across the street from Citizens Bank Park rudely and electronically interrupted his conference call – something Robertson handled by saying, "Hey, it happens," – he said he intends to earn his money any way the Phillies see fit for him.

That kind of goes against speculation that Robertson wound up spurning the Yankees' efforts to retain him because he couldn't close with Chapman in place. Instead, Robertson said "it was just the right time" to leave New York.

"There were other options out there," Robertson said. "This is a great place for me to come, a great place for me to play. It was just the right decision for me and my family.

"The Phillies are a great organization. They've got that hunger to get back into the postseason. They held the lead last year (in the division) for a long time. I think they're going in the right direction. ... It's a place where I'm going to get a lot of opportunities to pitch in the back end of the bullpen, and I don't see any reason why we can't get a postseason (berth)."

Originally a Yankees 17th round pick in 2006 out of the University of Alabama, Robertson has been in the majors for all or part of 11 seasons, including two tours with the Yankees. He became Mariano Rivera's set-up man, then succeeded him as closer in 2014 until signing a free agent contract with the Chicago White Sox the next year. He stayed in Chicago for 2½ seasons before being traded back to the Bronx.

Robertson has a career strikeouts-per-nine ratio of nearly 12, and overall has gone 53-32 with a 2.88 ERA with 137 saves and 874 strikeouts in 654 major league appearances.

As for his durability, Robertson has made at least 60 appearances in each of the last nine seasons, something only 12 other relievers in MLB history has done. Over his first 11 MLB seasons, he's maintained a strikeouts-per-nine ratio of at least 10, something no other major league pitcher has done.

For the Phillies, Robertson's presence answers what had become an old question under former manager Pete Mackanin and a ridiculous one under Kapler last season ... so who's the closer, anyway?

While feigning he didn't necessarily believe in a one-closer system, Kapler saw Hector Neris melt down in the role, just as he had during Mackanin's days in the dugout. He then wore out rookie Dominguez there late in the season, but overall nine guys had at least one save.

Even Pat Neshek, who returned to the Phils with his usual eighth-inning-only mandate, was closing on occasion. Not that the Phillies needed a closer a whole lot during a disastrous second half of the season.

But while being one of the prime bidders this offseason for either or both of top free agents Manny Machado and Bryce Harper, the Phillies have indeed improved themselves with the addition of shortstop Jean Segura, acquired in a trade with Seattle for Carlos Santana and J.P. Crawford, and the signing of free agent outfielder Andrew McCutchen.

Klentak noted the Phillies' bullpen is now a team strength. So might they be willing to deal from that strength while continuing to pursue other assets, such as a needed starting left-handed pitcher?

"We are open to that," Klentak said. "I don't know how aggressively we'll be shopping our players because we like that group right now. ... We also know there may be opportunities to deal from that group, to address other areas.

"For the rest of the offseason I think we're going to continue to explore opportunities to make our team better. I don't know that our position on adding a starter has really changed. If we can access a starter for a price that we think makes sense and makes our team better, we'll explore that."

• • •

NOTES >> Klentak briefly addressed Machado's recent holiday visit, saying, "We spent a nice day with (Machado and entourage) at the ballpark and had a nice dinner in Philadelphia with them. It was an opportunity for us to talk to Manny about our organization and have him meet a lot of people. It was also a chance for him to ask us questions and learn a little more about us." As for whether he thought it could prove fruitful in trying to woo Machado, Klentak said he had no idea. ... Robertson acted as his own agent during negotiations with Klentak, which the Phillies GM called, "unique." Klentak said Robertson was "very well prepared. He knew the market extremely well and he knew what he was looking for."